


Arpeggiotale: Exordium

by AsianTapWater



Series: Arpeggiotale [1]
Category: Undertale (Video Game)
Genre: Human-Monster War (Undertale), Mettaton NEO (Undertale), Original Character(s), Post-Undertale Pacifist Route
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2021-02-21
Updated: 2021-02-22
Packaged: 2021-03-18 22:34:01
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 2
Words: 985
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/29616441
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/AsianTapWater/pseuds/AsianTapWater
Summary: A collection of short stories for my AU, Arpeggiotale.Exordium - A Latin word meaning beginning or introduction
Series: Arpeggiotale [1]
Series URL: https://archiveofourown.org/series/2175963





	1. Malcolm

Malcolm marched through the forest, rifle in hand. Beyond the near edge of the trees was the elevated rocky path which led to an opening in Mt Ebott. It was clear, for now; no signs of the enemy.

He pulled out his radar, a specialised piece of equipment that detected the magic signatures emitted by monsters and their souls. Also clear.

 _That's weird,_ he thought. _I could've sworn the boys said something was happening on this end._

Just as he thought that, the radar began to beep rapidly, and the leaves in the trees around him began to shake.

"What the hell-" he began to say, then yelled as something leapt down and threw him against a nearby tree.

For a while Malcolm could only lie on the ground, pain searing through him from what he prayed wasn't a broken back.

The creature moved towards him. From where he lay, he could see two dark boots and a long black cloak. Slowly he craned his head up, and immediately froze again as he realised what he was up against.

It looked like a child: white skin, purple eyes, long black hair. The right side of its face was obscured by a black metal piece, upon which was a glowing purple crosshair.

It was a robot; specifically, one of three created by monsterkind to kill humans.

 _I'm fucked,_ he thought, laughing to himself, closing his eyes as he waited for the killing blow.

...

But it never came.

Malcolm opened his eyes. The robot stared at him, almost curiously.

It didn’t kill him.

It seemed like it didn’t even _want_ to kill him.

“What are you waiting for?” He asked slowly. “Kill me. It’s what you were made for, right?”

The robot’s expression shifted slightly. It looked... guilty? No, that couldn’t be right.

It pulled out a long sword (a katana, Malcolm guessed), and began to raise it to his head.. then stopped. It looked at Malcolm again, then put its sword away and spoke.

“No.”

Even its voice sounded like that of a child.

Malcolm didn’t move. What was it doing?

“No?” He could only repeat, confused.

But the robot didn’t say anything more.

It turned, and dashed away, not to be seen again for a long time.


	2. Emilia

_Two years later..._

Emilia coughed as the wind blew dust into her face. Another monster down, at least twenty more to go.

They were everywhere, the beasts; some looked like rabbits, others fish, and at least two even like skeletons--horrid, unnatural creatures.

Around her, members of her own troop attacked them back, some with guns, others running into the field with blades drawn.

She heard a yell, and turned to see Amélie sprinting with her own knife drawn.

_What is she thinking? She barely knows how to use that thing; she'll just get herself killed!_

"Amélie, wait!"

She ordered the woman, but Amélie didn't listen. She just kept running, long braids flailing madly in the wind as she did so.

Seeing no other option, Emilia ran after her, gun loaded and in hand.

As Amélie raised her knife to strike at a blue rabbit monster, it suddenly dropped its weapon and backed away. Amélie kept going, then finally stopped as Emilia yelled again.

"Stop!"

Amélie looked back at her, confused. Emilia gestured for her to retreat slightly, and she did.

By now all the humans had stopped, watching the monsters with confusion.

All of them had dropped their weapons and began to back away. There was no warning, no sign; they just stopped fighting suddenly and began to retreat.

"What's happening?" Amélie looked at Emilia.

"I don't know, but it's best we don't do anything until we find out," she replied.

"Sergeant, perhaps it's best we go back? Something doesn't feel right here," one of the men, who Emilia thought was named Mike, said.

"No, not yet," she stated.

And a moment later, she wished she hadn't.

A bright flash filled the battlefield. Around her, people screamed. Some in shock, many in pain, and some... she didn't want to think about. Her whole body felt like it had been lit aflame as pain seared through her. No, maybe she really _was_ on fire.

As she opened her eyes, the first thing she saw was dark, charred dirt. Flames roared around her; and in some of them lay her fallen comrades.

_Amélie! Where's Amélie?_

Emilia leapt to her feet, only to fall back down again as pain shot through her left leg.

"Crap," she hissed, noticing the odd angle her leg was bent at.

She looked around again, spotting Amélie's body a few meters away from her.

She opened her mouth to call out, then saw the figure standing above the body.

He was tall, with long black hair, and white skin which seemed to glow a pale orange by the flames.

The man turned around, and Emilia regretted ever getting up.

It was the very robot she'd been warned about. She remembered General Breland's words: _"Do not engage their robot. It_ will _kill you on sight."_

The glow wasn't from the flames.

In his hands was an orange soul. _Amélie's soul._

_Amélie was dead. And he killed her._

"You monster!" Emilia yelled, grabbing her still-loaded rifle and dragging herself across the ground towards him.

She expected him to attack her. 

Perhaps he would throw an explosive like what happened earlier. Maybe he would just grab her and snap her neck. Perhaps he'd throw her into the flames and steal her soul, have her suffer the same fate Amélie did.

But he didn't do any of that.

Instead, he backed off. Emilia wasn't sure what to make of the look on his face. Was that terror? Fear? Guilt?

Whatever it was, it disgusted her.

And it angered her even more when she didn't get a chance to shoot him before he ran off and disappeared into the smoke.


End file.
